Linda the Librarian

This book is a yearly read, because I need the regular reminder that God does His part and I need to do my part to grow in Christ-likeness. This is a great read if you need direction for getting out of debt or just a resetting of your attitude toward money.   If you enjoy historical fiction, this may be the book for you. This is the author's idea of what a possible back story for King Hezekiah and Queen Hephzibah might have been.  I enjoyed it from beginning to end.  Because sometimes you need a good picture book. I think we all go through mid-faith crisis at least once - probably more than once in our lives.  I appreciated her honesty and I could see myself in some of her story. I liked the authors' take on cancer prevention and treatment.  They really put a lot of power back into the hands of the patient.  We have more control (for good or for ill) over our own health than we realize, I think. Enjoy!...

Practicing His Presence by Brother Lawrence and Frank Laubach This is one of the books I try to read yearly.  I have certainly not perfected keeping Christ in mind every moment of every day, hence the reason this book needs to be read yearly.  I find that different passages stand out to me each time I read this little book (it's only 106 pages).  I thought I'd share the passages that spoke to me this reading. This is the best way to act: talk a great deal to the Lord.  Frank Laubach page 23 We ought not to be discouraged on account of our sins; rather, simply pray for the Lord's grace with perfect confidence, relying upon the infinite mercies of the Lord Jesus Christ.  God has never failed offering us His grace at each action.  I can distinctly perceive that grace, and I am never without a sense of that grace unless it is when my thoughts have wandered from a sense of God's presence or I have forgotten to ask the Lord for His assistance...

The Knowledge of the Holy by A. W. Tozer This is one of those books we own that I'm no longer sure how it came to belong to us.  It's one of those books that I kept telling myself that I need to read because it's a classic in Christian literature.  Finally, I read this book and I'm glad that I did. The Knowledge of the Holy isn't a long book, it's only 117 pages.  Mr. Tozer packed a lot of truth into such a small book though.  Each chapter (which is only two to four pages long) discusses one attribute of God and gives a concise explanation of how the attribute makes a difference to us in our day to day lives.   As I've stated before, this is brief but powerful and full of truth.  I took away two things from this book: first, if I hold a low, erroneous view of God then I am guilty of idolatry, second, God always retains all of His attributes all of the time (God doesn't let go of His justice to exercise His mercy for example).  The...

Respectable Sins by Jerry Bridges This is one of those books for which I can't use the word "love" to describe the way I feel about it.  Instead I use the word "need."  I need to be reminded to judge my thoughts, words, and deeds by God's standards rather than my own or the world's.  I need to be reminded that God takes all sin seriously.  I need to be reminded that I need Him all the time in all areas of my life. This book is equal parts encouraging and discouraging at this stage of my life.  Encouraging because I can see how much progress has been made, but discouraging because I can see how much I still need to grow.  Encouraging because conviction of sin is a proof of spiritual life, but discouraging that I need to be convicted of a specific sin yet again. I appreciate Mr. Bridges writing.  He puts the cookies on the bottom shelf without talking down to you.  He is very clear, very strong, but at the same time very gentle....